Textile spindle support



Aug. 14, 195 H. s. BROYLES TEXTILE SPINDLE SUPPORT Filed Dec. 6, 1952 INVENTOR v HAVEN $.BROYLES Y WW ATTOR EYS.

United States Patent TEXTILE SPlNDLE SUPPORT Haven S. Broyles, Narrows, Va., assignor to Celanese Corporation of America, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application December 6, 1952, Serial No. 324,491

'1 Claim. (Cl. 308-154) This invention relates to textile devices and more particularly relates to supports for textile spindles.

Textile spindles are usually slender tapered steel rods, commonly mounted for rotation in a vertical position and adapted to support a bobbin or similar device on which yarn is to be wound. At present the design, construction and installation of textile spindles and their supports demands great precision in order to minimize vibration. Any vibration results in uneven operation of spindles, resulting in unevenly wound packages, and causes the spindles and supports to wear out rapidly. Lubrication of the spindle supports presents an additional problem, since the yarn being wound on the spindle may become contaminated by lubricant thrown off from the spindle support. The spindle supports commonly employed do not adequately protect the yarn against such contamination or against contamination by rust which may develop on the spindle supports.

It is an object of this invention to provide a novel and edicient support for textile spindles which will be free from these and other defects.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a novel support for textile spindles which will be easy to assemble and disassemble, which will minimize the effects of vibration, and which will reduce the contamination of textile materials due to lubricants or rust.

Other objects of this invention will appear from the following detailed description and claim.

According to this invention, the spindle support comprises a spindle bolster, for receiving a spindle blade, provided with anti-friction bearings for engaging the spindle blade, said bolster fitting into a spindle base. The bolster is also provided, preferably at its upper end, with a portion having a hemispherically shaped lower surface which is adapted to be supported in a correspondingly shaped socket or dished seat in the upper portion of the spindle base. The hemispherically shaped surface is urged into engagement with the seat by means of a helical spring, for example. Between the hemispherically shaped surface and the seat there is located an annular compressible rubber element engaging and separating the seat and the ball-shaped surface.

The spindle support of this invention has many advantages. It minimizes the effects of vibration on the spindle and its support and thus effects great savings, since it makes it possible to use spindles and spindle supports which are less precisely designed, constructed and installed. It also minimizes the effects of any vibration which may be transmitted to the spindle and its support from the machinery to which the spindle unit is attached. Furthermore, there is decreased wear of the spindle support since metal to metal contact between bolster and base is avoided. The spindle support is easily assembled and disassembled, and is easily lubricated without contaminating the yarn being Wound on the spindle. In addition, any tendency for the support to rust is minimized.

The preferred embodiment of this invention is shown in the accompanying drawing wherein the figure is a cross-sectional elevational view showing the details of the support for textile spindles.

Referring now to the drawing, the reference numeral 3 designates a freely rotatable spindle blade, on whicha textile support, such as a bobbin, pirn, etc. (not shown), is adapted to be mounted. The rotatable spindle blade 3 is driven by the engagement of a moving endless belt (not shown) with a whorl 4 secured to the spindle blade 3. For mounting the spindle blade 3 there is provided a hollow generally cylindrical spindle bolster 6, which carries at its lower end a footstep bearing 7, adapted to engage and support the bottom of the spindle blade 3. Footstep bearing 7 is supported in the bolster 6 by means of 'a tubular bearing lock 8 which is threaded into the lower end of said bolster. The upper end of the bolster 6 is provided with an enlarged portion 9 on which is mounted a roller bearing 11 for engaging an intermediate portion of the spindle blade 3. The bolster. 6 is supported by a hollow, generally cylindrical spindle base 12, which is adapted to be supported, together with many other identical spindle bases, on a conventional spindle rail by means of the usual nuts 13 and washers 14. The bolster 6 is urged down into the base 12 by the action of a helical spring 16 which fits around the bolster 6, the spring action being transmitted to the bolster 6 in the following manner. The lower end of spring 16 presses in a downward direction against a ring 17 fitted on a sleeve 18 supported on a lower ring 19. The inner surface of the lower ring 19 is tapered for engagement with the correspondingly tapered outer surface of a split locking ring 21, which snaps into and is firmly seated in a circumferential groove 22 in the lower portion of the bolster 6. The upper end of the helical spring 16 presses in an upward direction against the lower portion of a tubular collar 23 telescoping the bolster 6 between the bolster and the spindle base 12. This collar 23 is prevented from moving upward by a lockscrew 24, mounted on the spindle base 12 and engaging in a slot 26 in the upper portion of the collar 23. The lockscrew 24 is also adapted to engage in slot 26 a projecting lip 27 integral with the bolster 6 and thereby limits any downward movement of said bolster. The bolster 6 and spindle base 12 are generally filled with lubricant poured in from the top of the bolster and spindle base before the spindle blade is inserted into the bolster 6. Holes 28 are drilled in the bolster 6 to provide for the flow of such lubricant between the inside and outside of the bolster 6. The enlarged upper portion 9 of the bolster 6 is provided with a hemispherically shaped lower surface 29, terminating at the bottom of said surface in a flat horizontal surface 31. This hemispherically shaped surface 29 is adapted to fit into a dished seat 32 located at the upper end of the base 12. Between seat 32 and the surface 29 there is placed an annular liner or separating element 33 which is advantageously made of soft rubber, although other suitable compressible materials may be employed, and is preferably cup-shaped and of such dimensions that it extends over the whole surface of the seat 32 and of surface 29 and engages the lower fiat surface 31.

The rubber element 33 absorbs vibrations and also minimizes the escape of lubricant from the spindle base 12, while allowing the desired amount of lubrication to reach the hemispherical surface 29 and seat 32. The liner 33 also eliminates undue wear of the surface 29 and seat 32 by eliminating metal to metal contact between these surfaces.

The rubber element 33 also prevents the galvanic action which sometimes takes place when two dissimilar metals are in bearing contact, for example when the hemispherical surface 29 is made of steel and the seat 32 is made of cast iron. In the absence of the rubber precipitate which .would ,tend

3 element 33 such galvanic action may cause the formation of a deposit on the seat 32, thus preventing proper spindle alignment. Also, such galvanic action in some instances causes ,a breakdown of. the eluhricantrin "the spindle ibase, .Ihus, decreasing. me effectiveness nfiihedubficaht. Inaddition, such breakdown of ;the .lluhricant produces ,a red .to ,discolor :the yarn. ThQSQJiIfiCUlfiGS. are avoided when thelubher element 33 is present.

.-It is Etc he'.understo 1d that the foregoing detailed description givenrmerelyiby waycf illustration and that ,many variations may he "made ,therein without departing .fromlhespiritofmyinvention.

,Havigg described myimientiomrwha't Ldesiretosecure .hy Letterslatentis:

A ,teXtilc spindle ,comprisingaa rotatable spindle blade,

'.aspindleJaolstenreceivingrsaidrspindle blade, saidrspindle I bolster beingtprovided :withsa lowerbearingreceiving {the lower .end .Of said spindle blade ,and with an enlarged :upper bearing engaging .anintermediate zone .of .said spindle blade .and supported ontthefinlarged upper poration ,of the spindle bolster, said enlarged .upper portion having .a .lower hcmisphcrically shaped :surface .terniinating in a lower horizontal flat surface, a spindle base receiving said spindle 'bolster andhaving at its upper end a dished seat adapted to engage and support said hemispherically shaped surface, a tubular collar telescoping the spindle bolster between the spindle bolster and tfhe spindle base and having its upper surface spaced from the lower horizontal flat surface of the enlarged upper portion of the spindle -.bolster,-spring,means r pressing against the lower surface of the tubular collar and pressing opera- :tively ;against ;the ibDlStfiI for urging ;the fhemispherioally shaped surface of the enlarged iupper portion :of the spindle bolster into engagement with said'dished seat,'and an annular compressible :rubher "element engaging substantially all of said seat and separating said seat and said surface antlalso engaging said horizontal flat surface.

References Citedin the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,138,659 {Kindig Nov. 29, 1938 2,25%;040 "fifioung O ct. 7, 11941 2";283963 Winslow May 26, 31942 

